Three different Michigan freshmen have scored at least 20 points in a game during the Wolverines’ unforgettable run to the Final Four.

Think about that for a moment.

In the four most pressure-packed contests of their debut college seasons, a trio of first-year players has taken turns pouring in points against some of the best teams in the nation. It’s no wonder one of those fresh-faced stars, Nik Stauskas, dropped the favorite line of every freshman who survives this long in the NCAA Tournament.

“At this point in the season we really don’t consider ourselves freshmen,” he said while sitting on the interview stage the day after his Wolverines knocked off Kansas in overtime in a classic Sweet 16 game.

Stauskas, big man Mitch McGary and wing Glenn Robinson III have been phenomenal during Michigan’s march toward its first berth in the national semifinals since, fittingly, the Fab Five took the Wolverines to back-to-back championship games in 1992 and 1993. As a group, those three have made 72 of their 113 field-goal attempts in the tournament, a stunning 63.7 percent clip.

McGary (73.3 percent) had 21 points against VCU and 25 against Kansas—and 14 rebounds in each. Robinson (62.2 percent) had 21 points in the opener against South Dakota State—on 8-of-9 nine shooting. Stauskas (51.6 percent) had 22 points in the Elite Eight against Florida—on 6-for-6 from beyond the 3-point arc. Stauskas and Robinson are shooting a healthy 42.8 percent from 3 (12-for-28).

Syracuse won’t consider these three “freshmen” when compiling scouting reports.

The postseason performances reflect the three’s growth as players. McGary has shown the most obvious improvement; he went from a 12- to 20-minute role player inside to almost an afterthought—he played eight minutes in the regular-season finale against Indiana—to the most important Wolverine not named Trey Burke.

There were times early in the season when McGary, who admits he wasn’t always in optimal shape, would get fatigued and start walking up the court or standing straight up instead of staying in a defensive stance. He watched Jordan Morgan, listened to the advice of Michigan’s senior big man and took it to heart.

The 6-foot-10 McGary, who wears the same No. 4 as Fab Fiver Chris Webber, got his second start of the season in the Wolverines’ NCAA Tournament opener. “From the very beginning of that South Dakota State game, Mitch kinda set the tone,” Stauskas said. “He came in right off the jump making layups, getting rebounds and diving on loose balls. When he brings that energy to the team, it kind of picks us all up and we get into a rhythm.”

He had 13 points, nine rebounds and a pair of steals against the Jackrabbits, and has gotten the starting nod in Michigan’s other three tournament games.

“I’m doing the same thing, just at the start of the game now,” McGary said. “Luckily enough, I’m getting easy baskets when Trey’s feeding me and it’s working for the best.”

His dominating play in the tournament sparked questions—at least among the media and NBA scouts—about whether he’d declare for the draft after the Final Four. McGary, though, doesn’t have that question in his mind. “I haven’t even thought about (leaving),” he told MLive.com Tuesday. “I don’t have a decision to make—I’m coming back.”

Stauskas, on the other hand, started off the season red-hot from beyond the arc. That wasn’t a surprise—a YouTube clip of him knocking down 102 3-pointers in five minutes in his back yard has more than 27,000 views.

In his first eight games with Michigan, Stauskas made 21 of his 33 attempts from 3-point range, a healthy 63.6 percent. That pace slowed, obviously. If it hadn’t, every Michigan column this month would be written about the greatest 3-point shooter in the history of ever. Along the way, Stauskas has learned all about the grind of the Big Ten season.

“He really works at it, and that’s rare with a freshman,” coach John Beilein said. “A freshman may have an off night, he may talk about ‘I’m not getting the shots, I’m not getting the looks.’ That’s not Nik; Nik works at his game to be ready.”

Of all the Michigan starters, Robinson has probably gotten the least attention, which just isn’t right. The 6-6 wing has started every game this season, is averaging 11.0 points and is shooting 56.6 percent from the field. In addition to his stellar game against South Dakota State, he had 14 points and nine rebounds against VCU, then 13 points, eight rebounds and three huge steals in Michigan’s comeback win against Kansas.

Robinson has also picked up little things that have made him a better player; one of the biggest is the value of taking slowing down instead of rushing everything.

“I’ve learned from (Burke) about the hesitation,” Robinson said. “The defense relaxes as soon as you hesitate and kinda stop a little bit. They relax, and (Burke is) so quick, he gets right around them as soon as they stand up and get straight. I think he knows that. I’ve used it a couple times, especially in practice, when we’re shooting around or messing around and playing one on one, I use it to see the effect of that.”

It’s not a coincidence that the freshmen are succeeding at this stage of the season. “Our whole philosophy,” Beilein said, “is we watch people in practice, we try to get them in the best-suited situations for them to be successful as we grow their game.”

And this, the first Final Four trip in two decades for Michigan, is the result of McGary, Stauskas and Robinson growing their games.